Attempting to Save Money and have a Clean House I got Creative
I wanted a Housekeeper and I wanted to Save Money
One night in December after feeling frustrated that I had to clean my house after a long week of work, I let my mind wander. I asked the question, “What if?” I wondered if there was a way that I could hire myself to clean my house? I wanted to save money for our trip to Hawaii this summer, and I am always looking for a way to pick up a side hustle. I am always looking for a fresh approach to an old problem.
Most of the time we already have the answers to our problems within us. We just need to have the courage to find them.
And so, on a run, which is when I do my best thinking, I proposed an idea to myself that I thought could work.
I would Hire myself for 50 dollars a week.
50 Dollars does not seem like a whole lot, and I am not sure I would be caught spending time outside of my house working for such a meager wage. But, the positives were: I did not have to spend time away from the family, driving was not required, I could do my job at anytime, I did not need to explain things to anyone, or worry about another person in my home. For the most part, I really did not need to make many changes to my current life.
Money was electronically withdrawn from our budget app into another category.
I know myself well enough to know that if I don’t pay myself first, it might never happen. It would be easy to run out of money by the end of the week. But, if I took the money out first thing, I would feel as though I was actually paying for a service. It felt good to know that I could have a housekeeper.
I decided to put a cleaning schedule together.
If I allowed myself to just clean whatever and whenever, I am confident not a whole lot would get accomplished. I decided to set a reasonable schedule with only a few things on it each day. I would clean and organize something each day. But I would also set myself up for success by creating a cleaning schedule that would work with my life.
Two days after I decided to shift my perspective and enjoy submitting to my creativity; I tried being a housekeeper in my own home. At first it felt new and exciting. After two weeks of working well, it felt more routine, but it was working. I was saving money each week, and getting my house cleaned. When I thought about the money I could generate from this side hustle by August I got really excited.
I enjoyed my new identity.
It was exciting to tell the kids that the housekeeper would be coming on a particular evening, and even bringing her team (They soon figured out that they were they team!). It was fun to engage them in the cleaning, when it was possible, and explain that the money we were making together would be going towards our family traveling this summer.
Sometimes a shift in perspective is all you need to recharge your thoughts and get you moving again. It helped for me to think of things in a new way, and really got me excited about cleaning my own house.
Enjoying Every Mile 